Berlin eases asylum rules for Syrians as migrants pour into EU

Germany on Tuesday said it had eased asylum rules for Syrians in a move expected to relieve pressure on southern European nations as thousands more migrants pour into the bloc. Record numbers of people are streaming into EU member Hungary from Serbia, posing a new headache for regional leaders who will meet this week at a summit to be dominated by Europe’s worst migrant crisis since World War II. As criticism mounts over the bloc’s response to the crisis, Germany said it has stopped returning Syrian asylum-seekers to their first EU port of entry, becoming the first member state to effectively simplify the application process for those fleeing the brutal civil war.